This invention relates to an electrolytic flow-cell apparatus and a process for effecting sequential electrochemical reactions of redoxidative compounds at a porous working electrode. The porous working electrode has a first face and a second and opposite face, at which faces the sequential reactions are effected.
Porous electrode elements and flow cells have found wide use in electrochemical conversion reactions. However, it generally has not been possible to convert "short-lived" electrochemically generated species or chemical reaction products thereof to other desired species or products in existing electrolysis apparatus. One reason for this difficulty stems from the fact that previously it has been necessary to employ two separate electrolytic cells, one for the initial electrochemical reaction and the other for the subsequent electrochemical reaction. Following the initial electrolysis, the electrolysis medium containing the initially generated species had to be transferred from the initial electrolytic cell to the subsequent electrolytic cell for the subsequent electrolysis. In effecting this transfer of the electrolysis medium from the initial electrolytic cell to the subsequent electrolytic cell, it has been necessary to maintain a break in the electrolysis medium between the cells in order to prevent interaction between the separate power sources required for each cell.
The procedural requirements associated with the employment of two separate electrolytic cells were very time consuming and inconvenient. And, in those cases where the initially generated species was sufficiently short-lived, the desired conversion could not be effected at all.
It is therefore an object of the present invention to provide an electrolytic flow-cell apparatus and a process for effecting sequential electrochemical reactions of redoxidative compounds.
Various other objects and advantages of the invention will become apparent from the accompanying description and disclosure.
The above and other objects have been accomplished in a very effective and efficient manner by the present invention. The surprising and unexpected success with which the objects have been accomplished is apparent from the unique properties and advantages of the present invention as described in the following specification and claims. Briefly, however, these include effecting the desired sequential electrochemical reactions of redoxidative compounds at the faces of a porous working electrode having a first face and a second and opposite face, with each face being independently maintained at a selectible electrical potential. This independent maintenance of each face of the porous working electrode at a selectible electrical potential permits the present invention to effectively overcome the problems encountered in the prior art occasioned by the employment of two separate electrolytic cells.
Thus, the present invention effects the sequential electrochemical reaction of many redoxidative compounds to yield products previously not conveniently accessible by either electrochemical or chemical means.